ESPN NBA Conference Call Highlights with Magic, Jackson and Van Gundy

ESPN NBA Conference Call Highlights with Magic, Jackson and Van Gundy

ESPN NBA analysts Magic Johnson, Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy shared their perspectives on the 2008 Finals rematch between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers (Thursday, Dec. 25, at 5 p.m. ET on ABC), part of a Christmas Day tripleheader across ESPN and ABC. Mike Breen will call the Celtics/Lakers game with Jackson and Van Gundy. Johnson will make his network debut during the GMC NBA Countdown pregame show, in advance of the ABC doubleheader, at 2 p.m.

(Click above image to see 2008 Finals recap)

On playing on Christmas Day:

Magic Johnson – “I loved it, and it didn’t matter if we were on the road or not. Just give me the basketball in my hand, and everybody watching me? Oh, man. We were the featured game. I loved it. It’s the best time because there’s only a couple of teams playing. It’s fantastic.”

On which team – Celtics or Lakers – is playing better right now?

Johnson – “The Celtics are playing better on both ends of the court. You can just tell that they really want to repeat. The Lakers have been struggling, big time, on the defensive end, so they’ve got a lot of work to do to come up to where the Celtics are.”

Mark Jackson – “The difference is the way the Celtics get after it defensively. You know exactly what you are going to get from them on both ends of the floor on a nightly basis…right now, the Lakers are searching for that.”

On the impact of the Celtics/Lakers game in L.A.:

Magic Johnson – “The excitement is just like the old days, no question about it…I think this is about the Lakers. The Lakers have to prove to the Celtics and to themselves that they can handle the physical play of the Celtics…That last beating that they took by 39 points, that should have left a sour taste in the Lakers’ mouth…to me, that was an embarrassment for the Lakers. Those guys have got to come out and really prove something to themselves and show the league that they are really ready to challenge the Celtics. Right now, the Celtics believe that the Lakers can’t beat them. It’s all about the Lakers on Christmas day. The Celtics know they’ve got something over the Lakers and when you know that, you come in with confidence.”

On the importance of defense when contending for a title:

Jeff Van Gundy – “What wins doesn’t change in the NBA. You’ve got to defend, rebound, and have enough offensive balance and enough weapons and star players to carry you in the fourth quarter. I’m most impressed with the Celtics…their defensive intensity coming off a championship.”

Johnson – “If you break down the Celtics, they only really have one star defensive player in Kevin Garnett, but they play the best team defense that we’ve probably seen in a long time. Defense has always been in style and it will always be in style if you make a commitment to it if you really want to win the championship.”

On the duel between Paul Pierce and Kobe Bryant and Celtics/Lakers:

Magic Johnson – “I thought Paul (Pierce) had a great chip on his shoulder to show everybody that he was one of the best players in the league. He dominated the playoffs. I think he took it personal that he and Kobe (Bryant) were going to go head-to-head in the championship series….you want two players like Kobe and Paul, or Kobe and Ray Allen, to want to look forward to the battle…myself and Larry (Bird), we looked forward to the battle. The Celtics and the Lakers, they wanted each other. I think, this Christmas Day, you are going to see both teams want each other. Just like back in the day, we wished we played more than two times during the regular season and these guys wish they played more than two games too.”

Van Gundy – “The Lakers have more physical talent than the Celtics. They have more options, offensively. They have a better bench, but the Celtics have the trump card right now in that they defend harder on every possession and better on every possession than any team in the league.”

On Boston Celtics assistant coach Tom Thibodeau and his coaching in The Finals:

Johnson – “I don’t understand what these teams are thinking about, when a man comes up with defense like that and he gets passed over for all these other guys. That doesn’t make sense to me. If he doesn’t get one of these jobs, the general managers, they should all get fired.”

On the emergence of Boston’s Rajon Rondo:

Johnson – “I think that Rajon Rondo should really make it as an All-Star this year. He’s so underrated. I think he surprised all of us last season, but he’s not a surprise now. He’s playing tremendous again this season.”

Additional commentary

During an assessment of the New Orleans Hornets:

Van Gundy – “I think Byron Scott is one of the most underrated coaches in the league…what he did with New Jersey and what he’s done now with New Orleans. Byron Scott and Jeff Bower as a combination coach and general manager don’t have to take a back seat to anyone in the NBA.”

On the Orlando Magic as a contender:

Jackson – “Certainly, the Celtics and the Cavaliers are the two best teams in the Eastern Conference and you could make the case they are the two best teams in basketball. I think what is going on, under the radar, is the job that Stan Van Gundy is doing. You could make the case that he is the coach of the year in the NBA right now. Dwight Howard has elevated his game. He’s taking a commitment to being a force on both ends of the floor – changing shots; rebounding the basketball. Rashard Lewis is playing outstanding. Overall, that is a dangerous team. If I was the Celtics or the Cavs, I would certainly not look forward to facing an Orlando Magic team with Dwight Howard manning the middle come playoff time.”